Postal workers call for action

POSTAL WORKERS have delivered a thumping rejection to Royal Mail's
plans to impose a 2.9% pay offer and to implement backdoor privatisation
of the Post Office. The result of the consultative ballot by the
Communication Workers Union (CWU) was announced at its annual
conference. It showed that over 98% of CWU members who responded
supported the union's position of keeping Royal Mail a publicly owned
and run company. Ken Smith reports.

The ballot also showed postal workers are opp-osed to the 40,000 plus
job losses that Royal Mail are considering as part of their
reorganisation of postal services. In a 60% turnout - with over 90,000
members backing the union - the membership also effectively committed
itself to fighting Royal Mail's recently imposed 2.9% pay deal.

The union has now given Royal Mail management - in particular Alan
Leighton and Alan Crozier - four weeks to reopen negotiations on this
year's pay deal and other related issues or the union will begin a
ballot on industrial action.

Even before the ballot result was announced, Royal Mail bosses were
trying to conduct a negative spin operation about the results. They
claimed it was unrepresentative and that they would get an independent
auditor to try and scrutinise the union's ballot.

In response, CWU general secretary, Billy Hayes, said it was Alan
Leighton who had carried out an illegal ballot - referring to Alan
Leighton's claims that, in a poll, 80,000 postal workers had expressed
an interest in the Royal Mail share scheme.

Also anticipating Royal Mail's attacks, the union conducted a
telephone poll of 1,000 of its members and 68% said that they were very
angry at the imposition of the pay deal.

Gary Clarke, CWU Scotland Number 2 and a member of the CWI in
Scotland, said this is "the most crucial time for postal workers since
I've been on the job. After three years of a constant onslaught by
management there is huge resentment among CWU members against the
bosses. The mood is definitely there to show the bosses that they will
go this far and no further."

Other delegates warned the union leaders not to repeat the mistakes
of three years ago when they thought they had a 'yes' vote for action in
the bag. One delegate warned that this could be a defining conflict of
trade unionism in the 21st century so far.

There is real anger among CWU postal members that is definitely there
to be tapped into. Postal union leaders say they are willing to
negotiate but they feel that Alan Leighton and Royal Mail management
want to provoke this conflict. CWU members, however, are demanding that
their leadership stands firm and actually delivers on promises to push
Royal Mail management back on this issue. See also page 5.

Socialist Party members should visit postal sorting offices and
depots immediately and make contact with postal counter staff who are
also likely to be balloting for industrial action on the separate issue
of job cuts.